Ice dispensing apparatus



Feb.` 27, 1934. H. w. CLAUSEN Er Al.

ICE DI SPENSING APPARATUS Filed Deo. 2l, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet l """s sa Inv-'en azs.. Herman' Wlausez. ,Feier C. 'ausen. 'Zwan-51527 MMEIWIDQN Fel-a. 27, 1934. H. w. CLAUSEN ET AL ICE DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 2l, 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nils w e lzzvenozs. .Herman W'. @la usen.

3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Feb. .27, 1934. H. w. cLL'sEN Er AL ICE DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed Deo. 2l. 1931 Patented F eb. 27, 1934 ICE DISPENSING APPARATUS Herman W. Clausen and 'Peter C. Clausen, Los' Angeles, Calif.

' Application December 21, 1931 Serial No. 582,344.

s claims. (ci. S12-965g This invention is acoin controlled mechanism for dispensing packages but the invention was made particularly for the purpose of dispensing blocks of wrapped ice. One object of the invention is thel arrangement thereof for giving the mechanism a large capacity. To that end-it is provided with a plurality of conveyors, preferably six, each containing a number of blocks of ice or other packages, and coin controlled means for delivering the foremost block of ice p or package' successively from the plurality of conveyors. That is, at one operation of the machine the foremost block of ice will be delivered from one conveyor and at the next operation the 16 foremost block of ice from another conveyor, and so on for theA entire series of conveyors, and then, at the next operation of the machine the delivery means will return and act in connection with the rst conveyor, and said process will f be repeated. .y

Another feature ofthe invention consistsvin means for separating the packages from each other on each conveyor. In an ice delivery machine this invention keeps the blocks from freezing together, but such separation is desirable while using the machine for delivering other kinds of packages.

The foregoing'and other objectsof the invention will be better understood from lthe "accoma panying drawings and the following description and claims.

In the drawings herein: A Fig. 1 is a plan View of the machine with the near the lower end of the conveyors being broken away to show the gate controlling means, and showing the coin controlled mechanism and the gate controlling means diagrammatically. Fig. 2 is substantially a vertical section transversely parts broken away and parts omitted. Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic plan view of the door construction, parts lbeing broken away. Fig. 4 'is`a side consecutive opening of the gat'esto deliverpackages from the different= conveyors. Fig. 5 is a vertical section on line 5-5 of Fig. 9, parts broken away. Fig. 6 is a section of the cam shaft showing the cam arms thereon in elevation for open- ;jy. ing successively the gates for delivery of pack- .ages from the differentconveyors. .'Fig. '7 is a vertical section through the machine on the staggered line '7-7 shown in Fig. 1, showing parts o! the machine in side elevation. Fig. 8 is a.

1 transverse vertical section through the machine -casing in cross section and the blocks of ice of the machine on the line 22^of Fig. 1, with.

y by gravity, propel the chains 24. elevation of the ratchet-wheel for controlling the on the line 8-8 of Fig. 1, with parts broken away. Fig. 9 is an enlarged side elevation of the motor andthe conveyor selecting means shown on a' larger scale than in Fig. 7. Fig. 10 is a side elevation of the cam and associated parts for controlling the delivery doo'r, parts being broken away. Fig. 11 is a plan' view of the c am shaft and arms thereon for selecting'packages suc-- cessively from the dierent conveyors. Fig. 12 is a vertical section through the lower delivery 65 j portion ofthe machine on the line 12-12 ofv Fig.1.

Fig.` 13 is a vertical longitudinal section through y one of the conveyors with blocks of ice thereon, l on line 13-13 of Fig. 1. Fig. 14 is a reproduc- 10 tion of a part of the right hand portion of what is shown in Fig. 9, with parts omitted to explain the construction and operation of one of the conveyor selecting means. r

The machine herein shown for the particular purpose of delivering blocks of ice is provided with .a casing in which the mechanism isv mounted. As seen in Figs. 2 and 7 six inclined conveyors 21, here of the roller type, are provided substantially as indicated in Fig. 13. -In

Fig. 1 therev are shown three of these conveyors the upper group, side by side, and in Fig. 7 a lower and similar group of three conveyors 'is shownLthus providing six conveyors. They are shown to have rollers 22 and are downwardly 85 inclined so that blocks of ice 23 or` other packages may readily travel down the same by gravity.V

Each conveyor has on each side an endless chain 24, and said chains carry spacing rollers 25, not for the purpose of moving the vblocks or pack-` ages 23, but for the' purpose of keeping them separate The spacing rollers are mounted on thechains v 24. far enough apart to admit a block or package between each pair of them, and thus they prevent the ice blocks from freezing together and are useful-for separating packages of any character. The packages, as they move The chains 24 are mounted on pairs of idle sprocket wheels 26 at the ends of each conveyor 21. The blocks of ice or packages are placed on each conveyor at the upper end thereof through f the rear doors 27, shown in Figs. 1, and 7, and their pressure on itheir spacing rollers 25 move the chains whenever al package is made at the delivery end ofthe machine. Through the'rear doors 27, the blocks of ice or other packages are slid invover shelves 28.

From the conveyorsv 21 the blocks by gravity v pass in upon the delivery rollers 29 shown in 110 Fig. 12 and continue movingdownward untilthe advancing blocks of ice Aare stopped by the gate rollers 30, and by this means the conveyors of the mechanism are filled.

In the machine herein shown there are 'three upper conveyors adapted to receive thirteen blocks or packages each, and three lower conveyors adapted `to receive twelve blocks each, making the' capacity of the machine shown to be seventy-five blocks of ice or packages, but it is understood, of course, that there can be any number of conveyors of desired length.

After the machine has been charged with ice or packages 23, a purchaser approaches the delivery end of the machine shown at the left hand end of Fig. 1 and deposits a coin in the coin slot 31 to pay for a block of ice or package, and the coin makes anv electrical connection through the conduit 32 with motor 33, through a switch 34.

This part of the machine is not shown otherwise l gear 35 in the housing 36 to rotate the shaft 136 one revolution, and thereby actuates the crank 37, connecting rod 38, ratchet arm 39, ratchet 40, and thus partially rotates the vcam shaft 41, see Figs. 9, 10 and 4, and gives to said ratchet 40 a partial or step movement which causes one of the arms 42 to actuate a weighted lever 43, which is fulcrumed at 44-and operates the connecting rod 45 extending to the crank 46, as appears in Figs. 2 and 7.

Shaft 41 has six arms 42, as seen in Fig. 6, equally arranged angularly on said shaft, and each arm is adapted to rock its particular weighted lever 43 to open the corresponding gate 51.

'There are two series of arms 46, one lower series, as shown in Fig: 2, for operating the gates for the lower conveyor, and one upper series, as shown in Fig. 9, for operating the gates of the upper conveyors. The first of the series of arms 46, see Fig. 2, is secured on a rod 47 mounted in the uprights 48 and 49 and which has a bearing 50 on which the rocking gate members 51 are secured, as shown in the left hand portion of Fig. 2. 'Ihere is a series of three arms 46 shown in Fig. 2 for the lower set of conveyors; and the second arm shown in Fig. 2 is secured on a tube 53 on rod 47 and it operates the intermediate gate 51. The third arm 46 is secured on another tube 54 which loosely surrounds the tube 53 and it operaves the right hand gate shown in Fig. 2.

When one of the arms 46 is rocked by the means above explained, the gate 51 is rocked from the position shown by full lines to "the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 12. Said movement of gate 51 rocks the bell crank 55 also to the dotted line position shown in Fig. 12, which lifts the gate roller 30, that extends through slots 151 in gate 51, from the lower position shown to the' upper dotted' line position. This permits the movement forward by gravity of the forward block of ice or package, which had previously been held back by the roller 30, to the rollers 56 which lead to the delivery door 57 in the left hand end of the casing, as seen in Figs. 7 and 12, whereby the ice or package is discharged upon the delivery platform 58.

Simultaneously with the foregoing operation' of the gate 51 the roller 60 is lifted by the tilting of the gate 51 up behind the forward block or package to stop the following block of ice or package and hold it back. The bell crank 55 is connected by the bar 61 to a bracket 62 on a cross plate 63 that is secured on the uprights 49,

position shown by full lines in Fig. 9 to the dotted line position therein. This lever 66 is fulcrumed at 67 between its ends to the housing 36 andon its inner end carries a roller 68 that travels on the cam 65 as seen in Figs. 9 and 10. The downward movement of the arm 66 causes it to move the cables 69 and 70 which pass around the pulley 71 on a bracket 72.

The cable 69 is fastened on one side of the lever 66 and the cable 70 on the other. The cable 69 passes over the pulleys 71 land is then fastened to the outer end of the lever 73 pivotally connected on the rod 74 that controls one wing of the discharge door 57. The cable 69, after being secured to the end of the lever 73, is extended on around a pulley 76in the bracket 77 and is further extended over a pulley 78`and is fastened to the counterweight '79 that is sufficiently heavy to close the door 57, when the lever 66 is moved back to its normalv position. The other cable 70 is extended around the pulley 71 and secured to the outer end 'of the lever 80, that is pivcted on a rod 81 in the brackets 82 that are secured to the other wing of the door 57. This door-controlling mechanism illustrated diagrammatically in Figs. 1, 3 and 7 is old in the art and is shown conventionally for the purpose 0f this application.

In order to facilitate safe delivery of the packages from both the upper and lower conveyors, the lower gate 5l is provided with an extension 251 which when lowered, as shown by Idotted lines in Fig. 12, releases the discharged piickage onto the series of rollers 56 that are inclined from the uprights 48 and 49 toward door 57. Also the upper gates 51 are provided with elongated chute extensions 351 thatv move down a considerable distance toward the rollers 56 so that the blocks or packages have but a short distance to fall when discharged from the upper' gates.

From the foregoing it can be readily seen that the apparatus operates to deliver packages successively from the lower and upper tiersofl conveyors in a prearranged order, so that the same number of packages or blocks of 'ice are delivered from each conveyor alike and in the delivery the packages are spaced as described and move downwardly in a body, each block or package adding its weight to its respective cross roller 25 to move their respective pairs of chains 24.

Also from the foregoing it can be readily seen that the insertion of a coin in the slot 31 causes the delivery door 57 'to open at the same time that a package is released from one or the other of the gates 51 to discharge to the platform 58 and that as soon as the discharge is accomplished the weight 79 closes the door and the weighted levers 43 move to return the gates to their normal position.

Guides 90 are provided at the delivery end o1' the apparatus to guide the packages 91 toward 145 the centrally arranged delivery door 57. After a package is discharged the door 57 and the gate 51 that has beenactuated return' automatically to closed positions.

In operating the machine a coin is inserted in minacceV coin slot 31, which coin closes an electric circuit to motor 33. The motor, through the worm drive.

Ione step, causing one cam arm 42 to actuate a gate 51 to release a package or block of ice, also toi open discharge door 57 to permit the released package to pass outto the delivery platform 58.

To prevent more than one block of ice or pack. age at a time from discharging from a conveyor. each gate 51 is provided with a follow-up roller 60 that is moved up into the path of thefollowing block of ice, as illustrated by full and dotted lines in Fig. 12.

The weighted levers 43 normally rest on a support 143 that is arranged rearward of the cam shaft 41 and these weights are sufficiently heavy to return the gates 51 to their normal position and hold back the following package or block of ice, when a delivery of a package has been consummated. The stop rollers 30 are arranged so that when returned to their normal position they hold back the blocks of ice when the conveyors are fully charged and are effective to so operate regardless as to the pushing weight of the ice.

We claim as our invention:

1. Package dispensing apparatus including a conveyor for conveying blocks of ice one behind the other in single le, a gate pivotally mounted adjacent the discharge end of the'conveyor so as to rock and when in one position will hold a block of ice and stop the delivery movement of. the

i other blocks of ice and when operated will permit 2. Package dispensing apparatus including a. 1"

conveyor for conveying blocks of ice one behind the other in single le, a gatepivotally mounted adjacent the discharge end of the conveyor so as .to rock and when in one position will hold a block of ice ready for delivery and stop the delivery movement of the other blocks of ice and when operated will permit said first block of ice to be discharged, a bell crank lever having a stop bar that is adapted to be elevated by the delivery movement of said gate out of the path of the rst block of ice, and another stop bar connected with said gate which is adapted when the gate is' given its delivery movementv to be elevated by the gate behind the block of ice being delivered so as to hold back the other blocks of ice until the gate is returned to normal closing position.

holding it in and returning it to non-delivery position, and automatic meansfor rocking said gate and permitting the delivery of a block of ice.

3. Package dispensing apparatus including a conveyor for conveying blocks of ice one behind the other in single file, a gate pivotally mounted adjacent the discharge end of the conveyor so as lto rock and when in one position will hold a block of ice ready for delivery and stop the delivery movement of theother blocks of ice and when operated will permit said rst blockv of ice to be discharged, a bell crank lever having a stop bar that is adapted to be elevated by the delivery movement 4of said gate out of the path of said `a weighted lever connected with said gate for with saidl gate which is adapted when the gate is given its delivery movement to be elevated by the gate behind said block of ice being` delivered so as to hold,back the other blocks of ice until the gate is returned to normal closing position, a weighted lever connected with said gate for holding it in and returning it to non-delivery position, means for rocking said gate and permitting the delivery of a block of ice, a delivery door through which each block of ice is adapted to pass when opened, other means for simultaneously opening the delivery door with the actuation of said gate, and a motor for actuating the gate and door-controlled means.

HERMAN W. CLAUSEN. PETER. C; CLAUSEN.-

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